Shem Pete's Alaska The Territory of the Upper Cook Inlet Dena'Ina

Shem Pete (1896-1989), the colorful and brilliant raconteur from Susitna Station, Alaska, left a rich legacy of knowledge about the Upper Cook Inlet Dena'ina world. Shem was one of the most versatile storytellers and historians in twentieth-century Alaska, and his lifetime travel map of approximately 13,500 square miles is one of the largest ever documented in this degree of detail anywhere in the world. This expanded edition of Shem Pete's Alaska presents 970 named places, forming a reconstructed, composite place-name network from the vantage points of the life experiences of Shem Pete and other Dena'ina and Ahtna speakers. The place names are annotated with comments and stories by Shem Pete and 47 other speakers, and also by historic references, vignettes, copious photographs, a selection of historic maps, and elaborate new place-name maps constructed in topographical relief. The authors provide perspective on Dena'ina language and culture, as well as a summary of Dena'ina geographic knowledge and place-name research methodology. Shem Pete's Alaska is the central reference on the Dena'ina people of the Upper Cook Inlet, and makes a major contribution to Native American ethnogeography, Alaska history, and onomastics. A gold mine for scholars of ethnogeography and Native American studies, this beautifully produced edition is also a treasure for all Alaskans and for anyone interested in the "personal connectedness to a beautiful land" voiced by Dena'ina elders.Fall, James A., 3rd is the author of 'Shem Pete's Alaska The Territory of the Upper Cook Inlet Dena'Ina', published 2003 under ISBN 9781889963570 and ISBN 1889963577.